Call to Action Online - May 2012

NBCC’s Annual Advocate Summit Excites and Empowers

NBCC advocates know when and how to raise their voices. NBCC’s Annual Advocate Summit, formerly the Annual Advocacy Training Conference, kicked off Saturday with an inspiring and energizing opening rally. More than 600 advocates shared their Breast Cancer Deadline 2020® work. Not content to just talk about it, advocates gave rousing presentations that included videos, photographs and stories of incredible actions they have taken at the state and national levels during the first year of the campaign.

Advocates unable to attend the summit in person followed the event through Facebook and Twitter. Many posted their own accomplishments and photos in support of Breast Cancer Deadline 2020®. Others watched for updates on their states’ accomplishments. Most participants—those attending in person along with those who joined virtually—eagerly awaited NBCC President Fran Visco’s keynote speech during which she talked about the progress we’ve made in our first year of the deadline campaign.

Sunday Wrap UpOn Sunday morning, the plenary sessions focused on research updates from year one of Breast Cancer Deadline 2020®. The primary prevention plenary looked at ideas that will bring us closer to our goal, research into viruses, infectious agents, vaccines, and lifestyle along with other innovative approaches to the primary prevention of breast cancer. SHARE’s Alice Yaker moderated the panel, which included Paul Ewald, PhD, University of Louisville; Keith Knutson, PhD, Mayo Clinic and Walter Willett, MD, DrPh, Harvard School of Public Health.

The prevention of metastasis panelists helped advocates understand the creative approaches to preventing the spread of breast cancer to other parts of the body as identified by an interdisciplinary group of innovative thinkers. The plenary was moderated by Maria Wetzel, Michigan Breast Cancer Coalition, and included Ann Chambers, PhD, University of Western Ontario; Yibin Kang, PhD, Princeton University and Alana Welm, PhD, University of Utah.

In the afternoon, breast cancer advocates learned from other social change movements as panelists discussed the crucial role of social movements in creating new realities in the US and around the world. Speakers included Ambreen Ali, MSJ, CQ Roll Call; Robert Kraig, PhD, Citizen Action Wisconsin; Jeff Levi, PhD, Trust for America’s Health and Alan Rosenblatt, PhD, Center for American Progress. Each speaker shared their experiences in these real-world models of change and described how we can apply their methods for mobilizing social change to our own efforts to end breast cancer. The discussion was moderated by Cindy Pearson, National Women’s Health Network.

Monday Wrap UpMonday morning, Summit attendees learned who and what is in the way of progress toward the end of breast cancer and how NBCC is working to overcome those barriers. Musa Mayer, MFA, MA, AdvancedBC.org, led speakers C. Glenn Begley, MD, PhD, a Biotech Consultant; Paul Goldberg, The Cancer Letter and Greg Simon, JD, co-founder of FasterCures in the discussion.

Susan Dentzer, Editor-in-Chief of Health Affairs, moderated the second plenary session on Monday. Former Delaware Governor and US Congressman Mike Castle, JD; Judy Feder, PhD, Georgetown University; Mark Halperin, TIME; Ruth Marcus, JD, The Washington Post; and Carol Matyka, MA, NBCC Field Coordinator for Massachusetts discussed making the end of breast cancer a priority on the national political agenda.

At the Annual Advocate Summit Luncheon, Dr. Otis Brawley was the keynote speaker and shared his perspective on the problems with the current health care system. Dr. Brawley is the Chief Medical Officer and Executive Vice President of the American Cancer Society and a Professor of Hematology, Oncology, Medicine and Epidemiology at Emory University. He is most recently the author, with Paul Goldberg, of How We Do Harm: A Doctor Breaks Ranks About Being Sick in America, which includes an entire chapter on NBCC’s Project LEAD®.

During the afternoon, each advocate attending the NBCC 2012 Annual Advocate Summit attended a State Action Planning Workshop. Advocates worked collaboratively to develop regional plans for action to implement Breast Cancer Deadline 2020® in their local communities across the country and globe.

Nearly 600 advocates will hold more than 400 meetings with members of Congress today on Capitol Hill. In the past 20 years, NBCC has successfully lobbied for $2.8 billion in federal funds for research to the worldwide scientific community and expansion of access to care for the underserved, making our Lobby Day one of the largest, most empowering and effective advocacy days on Capitol Hill.

In a recent article on the Daily Beast, A Pink Rethink: Breast-Cancer Spending Comes Under the Microscope, Fran Visco notes that throughout today’s Lobby Day, NBCC’s advocates are asking members of Congress to support the Accelerating the End of Breast Cancer Act, which "defines an important role the federal government must play to reach the [Breast Cancer Deadline 2020®] goal of ending breast cancer."

For advocates, "visiting Capitol Hill and advocating for our yearly legislative priorities has always been an exciting way to show the significant impact of well-educated and informed consumers in bringing about change," said NBCC Board Member and Advocate Judi Bartek in her post on NBCC’s new blog. Bartek has participated in NBCC’s Lobby Day every year since its inception.

NBCC’s public policy advocacy is one of the four key strategies in our plan of action to achieve the goals and vision of Breast Cancer Deadline 2020®.